COMMUNIQUE
OF THE SECRETARIAT OF STATE
Vatican City, 25 October 2012 (VIS) -
Given below is the text of a communique released today by the Secretariat of
State.
"The sentence in the trial of Paolo Gabriele, which has now become
final, puts a full stop to the end of a sad affair which has had very painful
consequences.
"A personal offence was done to the Holy Father; the right to
privacy of the many people who, by virtue of their office, addressed themselves
to him was violated; the Holy See and a number of her institutions suffered
prejudice; communications between the bishops of the world and the Holy See were
hindered, and scandal was caused among the community of the faithful. Finally,
for a period of many months the serenity of the working community which daily
serves the Successor of Peter was disturbed.
"The accused admitted his guilt
at the end of a judicial process which took place transparently and justly, and
with full respect for the rights of the defence. The trial was able to ascertain
the facts, showing that Mr Gabriele had carried our his criminal plans not at
the instigation or incitement of third parties, but on the basis of his own
personal convictions, which can in no way be shared. Various conjectures about
the existence of plots or the involvement of other people have, in the light of
the sentence, been shown to be false.
"Now that the sentence is final, Mr
Gabriele will have to serve the prison term imposed upon him. He also faces a
procedure for dismissal, as laid down in the Regulations of the Roman
Curia.
"As regards the term of imprisonment, the possibility of pardon still
remains which, as has been reiterated on a number of occasions, is a sovereign
act on the part of the Holy Father. It does, however, reasonably presuppose
repentance on the part of the accused, and a sincere request for pardon to the
Supreme Pontiff and those who have been unjustly offended.
"In relation to
the harm caused, the term inflicted appears both lenient and just, a fact due to
the the specific nature of the legislative system from which it
arises".

DECLARATION
BY HOLY SEE PRESS OFFICE DIRECTOR CONCERNING THE SENTENCE AGAINST PAOLO
GABRIELE
Vatican City, 25 October 2012 (VIS) - "Since no appeals
have been filed against the sentence passed on Paolo Gabriele on 6 October, that
sentence has become final. Therefore, by mandate of the president of the
Tribunal, the promoter of justice this morning ordered the guilty party be
imprisoned, in enactment of the sentence. The order will be carried out during
the course of the day", reads a declaration made today by Holy See Press Office
Director Fr. Federico Lombardi S.J.POPE RECEIVES PRESIDENT OF THE
REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS
Vatican City, 25 October 2012 (VIS) - The Holy
See Press Office released the following communique at midday today:
"This
morning in the Vatican Apostolic Palace the Holy Father Benedict XVI received in
audience Demetris Christofias, president of the Republic of Cyprus. The
president subsequently went on to meet with Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio
Bertone S.D.B. who was accompanied by Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, secretary
for Relations with States.
"The discussions, which took place in a cordial
atmosphere, served to highlight the good relations that exist between the Holy
See and the Republic of Cyprus. Consideration was also given to issues of mutual
interest, in particular the importance of dialogue and of respect for human
rights, including the right to religious freedom.
"Since the Republic of
Cyprus holds the presidency of the Council of the European Union, the parties
also turned their attention to the situation in Europe. Finally, the hope was
expressed that initiatives for dialogue and peace between the sides in conflict
in the Middle East would achieve a positive outcome, with the contribution of
the international community".

PILGRIMAGE
TO ROME FOR THE YEAR OF FAITH BY THE ORDER OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE OF
JERUSALEM
Vatican City, 25 October 2012 (VIS) - Three thousand
knights and ladies of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem (a
tenth of the the total membership) will make a pilgrimage to Rome in 2013 for
the Year of Faith. The event, which is due to take place from 13 to 15
September, will coincide with the general assembly of the Order and will
conclude with a celebration of the Eucharist presided by the Holy Father in St.
Peter's Basilica.
The Grand Magisterium of the Order held its autumnal
session in Rome yesterday evening, under the presidency of Cardinal Edwin
Frederick O'Brien, grand master of the Order. During the meeting attention
turned, apart from to the pilgrimage, to the statutory commitments of the Order
in the Holy Land, and in particular those concerning the Latin Patriarchate of
Jerusalem. His Beatitude Fouad Twal, patriarch of Jerusalem of the Latins and
grand prior of the Order, illustrated a number of projects in the field of
education, He recalled how more than 18,000 students (around 2,500 in Israel,
5,700 in Palestine and 10,000 in Jordan), of whom 61 per cent are Christian,
frequent the forty-two primary and secondary schools funded by contributions
from the Order of the Holy Sepulchre.
The patriarch also made reference to
the religious and political situation, and to the ongoing conflicts in the
Middle East, expressing his concern at the growth in fundamentalism in the
region. He also noted how the importance of the Holy Land had been confirmed in
two important events which took place this year: The World Congress of Families
in Milan, Italy, which had focused on the Holy Family of Nazareth, and the
International Eucharistic Congress of Dublin, Ireland which had dedicated
particular attention to the Cenacle in Jerusalem.

AUDIENCES
Vatican City, 25 October 2012 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in
audience Archbishop Paul Tschang In-Nam, apostolic nuncio to Thailand and
Cambodia, and apostolic delegate to Laos and Myanmar.

"I came to cast fire upon the earth; and would that it were already kindled!

50

I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how I am constrained until it is accomplished!

51

Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division;

52

for henceforth in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three;

53

they will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against her mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law."

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the
Holy Spirit. Amen.

O glorious apostle, SAINT JUDE
THADDEUS, true relative of Jesus and Mary, I salute you through the most Sacred
Heart of Jesus! Through this Heart I praise and thank God for all the graces He
has bestowed upon you. Humbly prostrate before you, I implore you through this
Heart to look down upon me with compassion. Oh, despise not my poor prayer; let
not my trust be confounded! To you God has granted the privilege of aiding
mankind in the most desperate cases. Oh, come to my aid that I may praise the
mercies of God! All my life I will be grateful to you and will be your faithful
client until I can thank you in heaven. Amen.

Priest: "Blessed Apostle,
with confidence we invoke you!"People:"Blessed
Apostle, with confidence we invoke you!"Priest:
"St. Jude, help of the hopeless, aid me in my
distress."People: "St. Jude, help of the hopeless,
aid me in my distress."

PRAY FOR US that we before
death may expiate all our sins by sincere repentance and the worthy reception of
the holy Sacraments.

Pray for us that we may appease
the Divine Justice and obtain a favorable judgment.

Pray for us that we may be
admitted into the company of the blessed to rejoice in the presence of our God
forever.

The following prayer to be
recited by both priest and people.

Saint Jude, glorious apostle,
faithful servant and friend of Jesus, the name of the traitor has caused you to
be forgotten by many. But the Church honors and invokes you universally as the
patron of difficult and desperate cases. Pray for me who am so miserable. Make
use, I implore you, of that particular privilege accorded to you to bring
visible and speedy help where help was almost despaired of. Come to my
assistance in this great need that I may receive the consolation and help of
heaven in all my necessities, tribulations and sufferings, particularly —
(here make your request) — and that I may bless God with you and all
the elect throughout all eternity.

I promise you, O blessed JUDE,
to be ever mindful of this great favor, and I will never cease to honor you as
my special and powerful patron and do all in my power to encourage devotion to
you. Amen.

Saint Jude, pray for us and for
all who honor you and invoke your aid.

The Government of Canada awarded 2 pro-life
heroes: Linda Gibbons and Mary Wagner. They won the Queen's Diamond Jubilee
medal.
Linda Gibbons, is a humble grandmother, who has spent 10 years often
in prison defending the unborn children as their lives are being taken away each
day in Canada.
Mary Wagner is a young woman who tries to help pregnant
mothers keep their children. Both have been imprisoned for their efforts to save
unborn children while standing outside abortion clinics.
These women were
nominated by the courageous Conservative MP of Saskatchewan, Maurice Vellacott.
He compared these women to the civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr.
"Unlike the justice minister, Vellacott was unable to award these medals to
the victims of crime, because these baby victims are dead, so instead the award
to those 'heroines of humanity' Mary Wagner and Linda Gibbons who are trying to
protect defenceless, voiceless human beings in the womb from butchery and death,
and trying to let vulnerable women know that there are other options and support
and adoption possibilities," Vellacott said in a statement. "It's what you would
expect in a caring compassionate society."
Vellacott also explained, "It's a
pretty upside down world when we honour abortionists like Henry Morgentaler for
killing over 5,000 babies and imprison precious women, like Mary Wagner and
Linda Gibbons, who try to save babies from such savagery. They are the real
heroes of humanity!"

From
the iBreviary to parish webcams, Sacred Space and Pray as You - the Internet is
opening up many new ways of bringing people together in praying communities. A
new virtual group all over the world has recently started, praying the Rosary on
Skype.
Organiser Mrs Kinga Sólyomné Székely, writes: "Every evening at a set
time, usually 21.00 UK time, we connect together in groups of 8 -10 people on
Skype, via a live conference call, to recite a Rosary (with five Mysteries).
Before and after this we might pray other prayers too.
"We experienced that
there is a strong spiritual connection between the group’s members and with the
Heavens, bonding wonderfully with each other, becoming almost like a second
family to each other."
"Anyone is welcome to join the prayer group, with no
commitment or obligations. ( All you need to do is to download Skype application
on your computer, tabloid or smart phone for free, choose a Skype username and
password, needed for signing in. Then we are ready to connect in
prayer).
"The dream of Father Petrusz Pavlicek’s, OMF, (1902-1982), named
'Apostle of the Rosary', could become reality, for that: ‘'A worldwide expiatory
prayer campaign is needed to spread from man to man and from country to country.
Just like the Rosary’s beads are in one line, people should connect in a similar
way, to join together in prayer the two poles of the world and the Atlantic with
the Pacific.'"
“Only praying people can solve the contemporary problems”
Blessed John Paul II said.
"We would like to ask all our brothers and sisters
in God, please let others know about this praying opportunity, any way
possible."For further information or to join one of the 'Virgin Mary’s
Smile' prayer groups, please contact Mrs Kinga Sólyomné Székely on: theholyrosaryprayer@gmail.com ,
or on 00447413750031.

The
opening took place in the Tony Frizza Stadium to ensure that all students, staff
and invited guest were able to attend this very significant event.

In his
homily, Mgr Bennet recounted the significance of the Emmaus story and the need
for all in the Emmaus community to strive to live by the school motto ‘To Know
Christ’. He then proceeded to bless the new facilities.

The Principal of
Emmaus College, Mr Tony Hirst, emphasised to students what a privileged position
they are now in, to have five buildings under ten years old and facilities
comparable with any school in the eastern suburbs. This has come through the
commitment of the regional parishes and the sacrifices parents make for a
Catholic education for their children. He outlined that this privilege comes
with a responsibility, especially to work to the best of one’s ability and the
realisation that everyone has to strive to achieve their goals.

The Chair
of the College Board, Mr Louis Souchon, then outlined the role that Mr Bill
Holligan played during his almost two decades at Emmaus as Assistant Principal.
During his last 10 years he worked in a voluntary capacity as a Chaplain in
hospitals.

It was then Mr Holligan’s opportunity to respond, and he
outlined how far Emmaus has come in its short 32 year history. He indicated that
it was not only the wonderful facilities, but also the sense of vibrancy,
energy, welcome and drive that exists to make Emmaus a great school. He
described the Emmaus Performing Arts Centre as a masterpiece of design, with
provision of large and varied spaces, welcoming textures, which he said
demonstrated the value of quality builders, innovative and inventive
architectural input, and a broader and constant overview and liaison with
College staff. He humbly thanked everyone for having the opportunity to have the
building named in his honour.

Guests were able to tour the new facility
and enjoy afternoon tea at the conclusion of the ceremony.

NAIROBI, October, 23,
2012 (CISA)-A national organization for the Disabled people in Kenya plans to
establish a training manual for use by the women and the persons working in the
area of disability in the country.

In an interview with CISA during the
opening of the five-day training workshop for disabled persons, October 22 at
the Christian Health Association of Kenya (CHAK) Guest House, Nairobi, the
Chairperson of the United Disabled Persons of Kenya (UDPK), Ms Godliver Omondi
said the issue was central in the catering of the disabled people in the
country.

“The proposed training manual is expected to enable the
government ministries and departments to review disability as a developmental
issue and lead to the development and implementation of curricular and or
syllabuses that are disability friendly,” she explained.

More than 10
participants, drawn from various Community- based organizations (CBOs) working
in the area of disabilities are attending the five-day training workshop
(22-26).
“Through the use of the manual, government officials are expected to
gain more interest in disability, such that disability becomes a priority issue
in ministries agendas,” explained Ms Omondi.
The workshop topics include: the
concept of disability, gender and mainstreaming, how to carry out mainstreaming
processes and structure, task, functioning and working processes of a Ministry
of Government departments.

The workshop is being organized by the
Disabled Women in Africa (DWA) in collaboration with the Eastern African
Federation of the Disabled (EAF0D).
Organizers at the workshop told CISA that
by the end of the workshop, the proposed Training Manual document will have been
worked on.

“This is one of the major businesses ahead of the workshop
participants,” explained Mr Peter Musakhi, Assistant director for Gender and
Social Development, who is representing the Government at the
workshop.
SHARED FROM CISA NEWS

Agenzia Fides REPORT-
The body of the greek orthodox priest Fr. Fadi Jamil Haddad, pastor of the
church of St. Elias in Qatana, was found today in the Jaramana neighborhood
(north of Damascus) not far from the place where he was kidnapped, on October
19, by unidentified armed group (see Fides 24/10/2012). This was confirmed to
Fides by Fr. Haddad’s greek-orthodox confrere, who asked for anonymity. "His
body was horribly tortured and his eyes gouged out," he told Fides. "It is a
purely terrorist act. Fr. Haddad is a martyr of our church. "
With regards to
the responsibilities of the terrible act there is an ongoing rebound of
responsibilities between the opposition forces and government authorities, that
accuse the armed gangs of armed rebellion in the army. According to Fides
sources, the kidnappers had asked the priest’s family and his church a ransom of
50 million Syrian pounds (over 550 thousand euro). It was, however, impossible
to find the money and meet this exorbitant demand. A source of Fides condemns
"the terrible practice, present for months in this dirty war, of kidnapping and
then killing innocent civilians."
Among the various Christian communities in
Syria, the greek orthodox is the largest (with about 500 thousand faithful) and
is concentrated mainly in the western part of the country and in Damascus. (PA)
(Agenzia Fides 25/10/2012) (IMAGE SOURCE: weaselzippers.us)

Bishop of Brescia from about 387 until about 410;
he was the successor of the writer on heresies, St. Philastrius. At the time of
that saint's death Gaudentius was making a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. The people
of Brescia bound themselves by an oath that they would accept no other bishop
than Gaudentius; and St. Ambrose and other neighbouring prelates, in
consequence, obliged him to return, though against his will. The Eastern bishops
also threatened to refuse him Communion if he did not obey. We possess the
discourse which he made before St. Ambrose and other bishops on the occasion of
his consecration, in which he excuses, on the plea of obedience, his youth and
his presumption in speaking. He had brought back with him from the East many
precious relics of St. John Baptist and of the Apostles, and especially of the
Forty Martyrs of Sebaste, relics of whom he had received at Caesarea in
Cappadocia from nieces of St. Basil. These and other relics from Milan and
elsewhere he deposited in a basilica which he named Concilium Sanctorum. His
sermon on its dedication is extant. From a letter of St. Chrysostom (Ep.
clxxxiv) to Gaudentius it may be gathered that the two saints had met at
Antioch. When St. Chrysostom had been condemned to exile and had appealed to
Pope Innocent and the West in 405, Gaudentius warmly took his part. An embassy
to the Eastern Emperor Arcadius from his brother Honorius and from the pope,
bearing letters frorn both and from Italian bishops, consisted of Gaudentius and
two other bishops. The envoys were seized at Athens and sent to Constantinople,
being three days on a ship without food. They were not admitted into the city,
but were shut up in a fortress called Athyra, on the coast of Thrace. Their
credentials were seized by force, so that the thumb of one of the bishops was
broken, and they were offered a large sum of money if they would communicate
with Atticus, who had supplanted St. Chrysostom. They were consoled by God, and
St. Paul appeared to a deacon amongst them. They were eventually put on board an
unseaworthy vessel, and it was said that the captain had orders to wreck them.
However, they arrived safe at Lampsacus, where they took ship for Italy, and
arrived in twenty days at Otranto. Their own account of their four months'
adventures has been preserved to us by Palladius (Dialogus, 4). St. Chrysostom
wrote them several grateful letters.
We possess twenty-one genuine tractates
by Gaudentius. The first ten are a series of Easter sermons, written down after
delivery at the request of Benivolus, the chief of the Brescian nobility, who
had been prevented by ill health from hearing them delivered. In the preface
Gaudentius takes occasion to disown all unauthorized copies of his sermons
published by shorthand writers. These pirated editions seem to have been known
to Rufinus, who, in the dedication to St. Gaudentius of his translation of the
pseudo-Clementine "Recognitions", praises the intellectual gifts of thne Bishop
of Brescia, saying that even his extempore speaking is worthy of publication and
of preservation by posterity. The style of Gaudentius is simple, and his matter
is good. His body lies at Brescia in the Church of St. John Baptist, on the site
of the Concilium Sanctorum. His figure is frequently seen in the altar-pieces of
the great Brescian painters, Moretto, Savoldo, and Romanino. The best edition of
his works is by Galeardi (Padua, 1720, and in P.L., XX). SOURCE http://www.ewtn.com/saintsHoly/saints/G/stgaudentius.asp